CAIR, Law Office of Maria Kari File Motion Demanding U.S. End Discriminatory Refusal to Evacuate Americans from Gaza
PRESS STATEMENT
- For Immediate Release and Distribution -
(CHICAGO, IL, 3/7/25) – The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights organization, and the Law Office of Maria Kari today filed a motion for a preliminary injunction that would force the U.S. government to end its discriminatory refusal to evacuate American citizens, lawful permanent residents (LPRs) and their family members from Gaza even as the government evacuates Americans of other ethnicities from different conflict zones.
That injunction, filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, asks the question: “Does our Government view the lives of Palestinian Americans stranded in Gaza as worthy of being saved?”
SEE: Motion for Preliminary Injunction
CAIR also sent an updated letter, this time to the Trump administration’s State Department leadership, urging them to evacuate these Americans and their loved ones.
SEE: CAIR Letter Calling on US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to Evacuate Americans from Gaza
In a statement, Attorney Maria Kari, Law Office of Maria Kari, said:
“For over 500 days, Palestinian Americans stranded in Gaza have begged their government for help—only to be ignored. While the U.S. has swiftly evacuated citizens from other conflict zones, it has refused to do the same for Palestinian Americans, violating their constitutional right to equal protection. This blatant discrimination has sent a chilling message to the Palestinian American community: some American lives matter more than others.
“Today, my law office alongside CAIR National, has filed a preliminary injunction before the court, seeking immediate judicial intervention to prevent further harm. One plaintiff’s spouse has been killed while waiting to evacuate, several other plaintiffs are gravely injured and in need of medical care that’s simply unavailable in Gaza. Every day of inaction puts our plaintiffs at greater risk—this crisis cannot wait. We must bring these Americans home.”
“This is about the safety of American citizens, the number one duty of the American government. This is about government inaction. This is about government inaction based on who and where. We have a three layered problem,” said Ahmed Rehab, Executive Director CAIR-Chicago.
In a statement, Nicole Fauster-Bradford, Esq., CAIR’s Community Advocacy Director, said:
“These American citizens, LPRs, and their families remain in dire conditions despite the ceasefire and need immediate medical assistance. When I sent our initial letter to the State Department in December 2024, we did not get a response or even acknowledgment of our request. This departs drastically from the State Department’s responses to our other advocacy requests for assistance, where the Department’s officials have been responsive, thorough, and swift, albeit for matters in other countries.”
SEE: CAIR, Law Office of Maria Kari Lawsuit Against President Biden and Anthony Blinken
BACKGROUNDER:
In some cases, as early as December 2023, the State Department approved the travel of these American citizens, LPRs, and their loved ones to the United States from Gaza. However, the State Department has not rendered the necessary evacuation assistance needed to secure their travel to the United States.
Yet, the Biden administration admitted Israel to its visa waiver program on October 19, 2023, so that non-American Israelis could more easily reunite with their families in the United States. Just the week before that, the State Department deployed cruise ships for Americans intending to depart Israel.
The Biden administration has not made comparable efforts to evacuate similarly situated Americans and their loved ones trapped in Gaza. Attorneys now call upon the Trump administration to coordinate the evacuation of the plaintiffs who remain in Gaza.
END
CONTACT: Ahmed Rehab, Executive Director of CAIR-Chicago, 202-870-0166, arehab@cair.com; CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com